OK, it’s that time of year when the majority of your calls go unanswered and the bulk of your emails bounce back out-of-office replies wishing you all the best for holiday season. In marketing departments all over the country, marketing pros are losing themselves to the quicksand of Facebook, YouTube and endless hours of Netflix binging.

You’ve worked hard all year, and let’s face facts: You deserve a break. So instead of going through the motions of sitting at your desk and staring at your screen pretending to work – why not do something more enjoyable instead?

It’s time to turn off those screens and indulge yourself.

Take an extended lunch break with a colleague you’ve not had a chance to catch up with recently.

Yes – I’m giving you permission to slope off and do something other than work (or pretending to work).

There are no rules – other than maintaining a positive attitude. Just promise me that your won’t abuse this quiet period by moaning.

See Things Differently

This isn’t an excuse to shirk work. It’s an opportunity to give yourself time to breathe, appreciate the people around you and start opening your mind to new ideas.

I’ve often said that as a marketer you will never find inspiration staring at a blank screen. So do yourself a favor and step away from it.

Creativity needs space to breathe. Now is the perfect time to find that space. Take the pressure off the gas, free your mind from the daily drudgery of work and I promise, you will come back with more ideas than you ever had before.

So let those ideas flow freely (remember to capture the best ones) and give yourself a head start on 2017, when the pressure of business will be back and make creative thinking a thing of the past.

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